茶者，南方之嘉木也。
Tea grows in the south of China.
---Famous Tea Scholar Lu Yu Tea Sutra.
GuiZhou Green Tea: MeiTan CuiYa & GuiDing YunWu
Green tea is a way of life in Guizhou province and the export business of the country's favorite drink is booming.With its subtropical climate and unpolluted clean air, Guizhou is ideal for growing high-quality tea. In fact, the brand has been so successful it is developing a growing international reputation."The earth in the Guizhou Plateau has rich zinc and selenium, and the favorable earth conditions highlight the high nutritional values in tea,"The province has mild average temperatures with excellent rainfall－ideal conditions for growing green tea.
Naturally, the growth cycle for green tea in Guizhou is fairly slow because of the high altitude. While the shorter cultivation period in other provinces produces higher yields, Guizhou's green tea absorbs more nutrients during a longer growing period, making it a premium brand.
Guizhou Province located in China's southwest besides being rich in natural wonders and ethnic minority culture, is an important production area for green tea. Tea trees require warm humid weather with an alkali soil and Guizhou, located in a subtropical zone has idea conditions for the production of tea.
Mei Tan Cui Ya
Formerly known as Meijiang Tea, Meijiang CuiYa Tea is named after the Mei River where it is produced. The area’s climate is ideal for the production of tea. The climate is mild and features abundant rainfall and fertile soil. The best Meijiang Ya Tea is picked around the time of China’s Tomb Sweeping Festival which falls around the beginning of April. The tea is also picked at other times of the year, but is not as high quality as the early spring tea. Once picked the tea is left in the shade to dry about three to five hours before processing to allow slight oxidation to take place. The tea’s liquor has a greenish tint and a mellow taste with hints of sweetness.
GuiDing YunWu
Guiding Yunwu Tea - Produced in Yunwu Mountain in Guiding County, this tea was offered as tribute to the early Qing court. The leaves resemble fishhooks, thin and soft, with whitish hairs. This green tea is much favored for its low caffeine and high catechol content
The processing techniques are fairly complicated and the leaves picked must meet exacting standards. The tea can be picked five times a year and only a bud picked with two new leaves are used for producing Guiding Yunwu Tea. The best tea is produced in the early spring around the time of China's Tomb Sweeping Festival which falls around the beginning of April. The processing of the leaves includes kneading and rolling like Duyun Maojian Tea. The leaves are covered with white down and when processed are twisted and resemble a fishhook. When brewed, the tea's liquor has a mellow flavor and its fragrance has hints of honey.
